Gretchen Blais

Gretchen Blais, an Oakland artist

My artwork began one rainy Thanksgiving Day 30 years ago when my family and I were visiting out of town. My host suggested we all paint since it was too wet to be outside. It was a memorable event for four adults and six young children.

I came away with an experience hard to describe. I felt that something was released, never to become invisible again. I began to doodle more. With encouragement I took a few art classes and I began to carry my sketchbook with me like an extension of my arm and hand. I played with pencil, with line, with shape and patterns that kept changing and moving.

There is something about drawing that takes me to another space. I am always fascinated to see a drawing appear, to watch it grow, to see the image on the paper take form. As I review my work of 30 years, I see the drawn forms reappear with new visual and emotional meanings. The pencil line that made a leaf may return as a feather, an eyelash or nothing definite at all. However, they are old friends to me, and they make up a visual language for my experiences.

Although I have played with color through pastels and paint, I find myself returning to graphite and jokingly call myself a graphite pusher and an illustrator of interior visions, although I don’t always know what the vision means.

I have had my work on display in Oakland at Ultimate Grounds Coffee Shop, at the East Bay Community Recovery Project, through Pro Arts and at We the People auditorium during a showcase of Oakland artists. It is time for me to expand my work and share it with a broader audience.

Gretchen Blais

gblais@sbcglobal.net

All Images remain the property of Gretchen Blais and may not be used without written permission.